State of the Watersheds: Metro Atlanta Urban Waters Symposium 2025

From the venue:

Our 4th Annual MAUW Symposium will highlight environmental activism with a particular emphasis on environmental justice and climate change in confluence with community organizations.

PLEASE complete your registration by Monday, October 20th!

The Urban Watersheds of Atlanta: Proctor Creek, Sandy Creek, South River Creek and Utoy Creek.

Atlanta's Watersheds

By: Mollie Taylor

Proximity2nature.com

We often talk about the I-285 "perimeter" of Atlanta, but there are other natural perimeters that occupy little of our attention.

Pictured here are four of Atlanta's watersheds. Clockwise from the top right, they are Peachtree Creek, Upper South River, Utoy Creek-Chattahoochee River.

The Eastern Continental Divide

By: Mollie Taylor

Proximity2nature.com

Atlanta sits atop of the Eastern Continental Divide. Similar to the Great Continental Divide (where rivers on one side drain to the pacific and on the other side to the Atlantic), water on one side of this line flows to the Gulf of Mexico, while water on the other side flows directly to the Atlantic Ocean.

Because this ridgeline is relatively flat, railways were built here, followed by Dekalb Avenue and Lee Street, which roughly follow the divide.